Former Liverpool striker Michael Owen has admitted he fears Arne Slot will fail at Liverpool , having compared his arrival to that of David Moyes at Manchester United.
Slot is currently in the United States with his new side , having been appointed as Jurgen Klopp ’s successor earlier this summer. He will certainly have a tough act to follow, with the German having brought the club back to the pinnacle of world football during his tenure.
The change in leadership has drawn comparisons to Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure from Manchester United back in 2013. Moyes was chosen as his successor, but didn’t even last a season as the Old Trafford club immediately ran into problems.
READ MORE: Liverpool transfer news LIVE: Takefusa Kubo update, Dean Huijsen race, Trent Alexander-Arnold talks
READ MORE: Real Sociedad chief breaks silence on Takefusa Kubo transfer links to Liverpool
United has failed to win a league title since Ferguson’s retirement, and speaking to Genting Casino , Owen fears Liverpool might be heading down a similar path.
"I fear it's a possibility for Liverpool [to have a similar decline as Man United when they appointed David Moyes], but I hope it's not and by the time the season kicks off, everyone will be full of optimism again with a new manager, a new way of playing perhaps and one or two signings, but I don't think there will be wholesale changes,” Owen said. “I don't think he plays in a vastly different way to how Liverpool did under Jurgen Klopp.
"But of course every Liverpool fan will be nervous looking at what happened to Manchester United and Arsenal, even Chelsea, although they didn't have that consistency for a long time. But once it does start slipping it's hard to get it back, we're talking fine margins and you need to be an absolutely brilliant team to be competing now.
"It's the highest standard there has ever been, you literally can't make a mistake these days. They will be nervous. Are Liverpool going to remain a powerful force or has their era of greatness slipped and will it take time to build back up again? It remains to be seen.”
Owen added: "The problem with Arne Slot is that no matter who was announced, unless it was Pep, it's going to feel like a comedown from one of the greatest. Klopp just got the team, got the city, got everything straight away. He was everything a Liverpool fan would want. The wounds are open and there is a healing process, no matter who comes in it will be underwhelming.
"But you can bet Liverpool fans will be behind him. He'll be judged after that. It's a really difficult situation no matter who was appointed."
Liverpool.com says: Cheer up, Michael. Of course Klopp is going to be a tough act to follow, but as long as the expectations for Slot are reasonable, there’s every reason to believe Liverpool will succeed where United failed.
For starters, Liverpool actually has a high-quality team in place behind the scenes with Michael Edwards and Julian Ward returning to FSG. It’s this summer that United has actually caught up and started making some similar appointments.
It might take some signings to truly expel any fears that fans may have heading into Slot’s first season, but the team showed last season it can compete at the top of the Premier League. There’s no reason why they can’t do that again.
Most Popular
Comments / 0